Lifestyle

Rola chats with Najib Saab about the pitfalls of environmental journalism and advocacy in the Middle East For those with any interest in the environmental issues in the Arab world, “Al- Bia Wal-Tanmia” is a familiar name. Started in 1996, the only Pan Arab environmental magazine was the precursor of the Arab Forum for Environment […]

The Green Sheikh appropriately devotes this month’s column to the environmental and social benefits of Ramadan. Every year more than 1.6 billion people around the world celebrate the amazing holy month of Ramadan, (learn how to green your holy month) fasting from dawn to dusk, abstaining from food, drink and sexual relations. Only those who are […]

As the Middle East is short on its own green celebrities, the Zayed Prize has decided to nab some from Hollywood (and tennis) instead The Zayed Prize is the most prestigious green energy award in the Middle East so it’s easy to see why they have the pick of the bunch when it comes to […]

As the holy Islamic month of fasting approaches, why not prepare for a greener Ramadan now? There are literally a couple of days left till Ramadan starts, so I want to make a last ditch attempt to encourage Muslims to go green in the holy month of fasting. Whilst Tafline explored the darker side of […]

The cultural and political heart of Palestine, the city of Ramallah, wants to improve its green credentials As well as hosting Palestine’s first environmental festival this year and assisting the construction of the country’s first green city named ‘Rawabi’, Ramallah has aspirations to be an environmentally friendly city of its own. The municipality of Ramallah […]

Muslim, Jewish, and Christian leaders are meeting today in Jerusalem to discuss climate change and launch the new Interfaith Center for Sustainable Development. Leaders of the Muslim, Jewish, and Christian faiths will be convening this morning in Jerusalem to speak out about climate change at an Interfaith Climate Change Forum. Current environmental conditions in the […]

Has a real remnant from Jerusalem’s Second Temple come to light? For twenty-odd years, people stood in front of a glass cabinet in the Israel Museum, Jerusalem, and thrilled to view a small ivory pomegranate. It was supposed to be part of the High Priest’s sceptor in Solomon’s Temple (516 BCE to 70 EC). Sadly, […]

The focus on sharing profits and taking communities into consideration means that the Islamic way of banking is (theoretically) better for the planet The recent announcement by the CEO of Doha Bank, R Seetharaman, that Islamic banking is the right platform to boost ‘green financing’ as its values sustainable environmental development has got me thinking […]

With just over two weeks left till Ramadan the Islamic month of fasting, Muslims are being urged to go fairtrade For the typical Muslim family, the last couple of days before Ramadan, the holy month of fasting, is a mad dash to get everything sorted. Mums and dads will be finding time to do those […]

The Council of Religious Institutions of the Holy Land, which includes Palestinian and Israeli religious organisations, has officially recognized global warming and need for action Whilst the major world religions can boast some great green principles at their core such as moderation, limiting waste and caring for nature, they have been rather slow to acknowledge […]

Sheikh Abdul Aziz introduces ECOFFEE founder Norman Cescut, who describes three “amazing” days spent with the man we call “The Green Sheikh.” Through social media, ECOFFEE Founder Norman Cescut was following my various ecological trips worldwide, and soon asked me if I was interested in doing sustainable business with him. I told him: “it is […]

How you can travel lightly and simply, with baby. I just returned from a 9 day trip in Morocco. Besides attending a conference, my mission was to pack lightly, and return home lightly, without piles of tourist junk I would quickly throw away. I hiked in the Atlas Mountains, took a bus from Fez to […]

We speak to the Lebanese eco-campaigner Wael Hmaidan about corporate funding of green organisations in the Middle East and finding solutions In a previous post, I posed some questions about green groups in the Middle East receiving funding from not-so-green corporations. Is it a good thing if they are working together to protect nature? Or […]

Competitive and in tune with the Muslim market, ZABIHA.com is the official world guide to halal eating from around the world. Should we live more halal? Should companies invest in halal? Find out for yourself.

Hot dog! Puppy gets cooked alive. Animal cruelty at its worst! Examples of cruelty towards animals are easy to find these days where in the Middle East stray dogs getting shot on sight in Beirut Lebanon, and there is abuse towards animals imported for circus performances. The most cruelty to animals, to man’s best friend, […]

The eco-beard. Advocated by all three monotheistic religions, the timeless beard has a comeback with Budweiser's "Grow One. Save A Million" campaign in an annual celebration to save water. Read more on why believers should grow an environmentally friendly beard. And women, recruit your men!

Turkey is rapidly traveling down the same development path as many European countries. But will Turks be happier at the end of it? Today is the last day of the 9th International Conference of the European Society for Ecological Economics, which was held in Istanbul this year. A recurring theme at the conference was the […]

On June 17th, she started to drive the car, not pose in front of it. In a defiant move against the repressive treatment of females in Saudi Arabia, women across the Kingdom will do something commonplace around the world but forbidden in their country: they’ll start driving. Consider it the shot across the hood (much […]

"Work harmoniously, eat consciously, live moderately." After the successful Buddhist immersion program 'Monk for a Month', the Blood Foundation lubricates the friction between Muslims and non-Muslims in the 'Muslim for a Month' project in Turkey. Read more here.

US Green Muslims embrace the notion of co-housing, an environmentally friendly (and Islamic) lifestyle which combines privacy with a more tight-knit community Do you know the name of your next-door neighbour? What about what they do for a living? Do you know what their favourite pastime is? If you answered ‘no’ to any of these […]

How do you measure human well-being? How do you fully account for the impact of human interventions in poor regions like in Iraq? What costs are paid by the citizens of one country for the consumer demands of another? Renown economist Partha Dasgupta’s recent book, ‘Human Well-being and the Natural Environment’ is not for the […]

This image was taken from our interview with the Green Sheikh in Dubai earlier this year. And this is his first column on Green Prophet We are thrilled to announce that the Arab world’s most famous environmental activist will pen a monthly column for Green Prophet. Born H.E. Sheikh Abdulaziz Al Nuaimi, he is probably […]

A Ukranian woman and an Israeli man (a couple in love) pose for green love in digital times, in Old Jaffa overlooking Tel Aviv. I’ve been singing Lovers In A Dangerous Time by the Canadian singer Bruce Cockburn over the last week or so. A perfect song, an anthem for my trip around Jaffa yesterday […]

The 49 days between the holidays of Passover and Shavuot are a stairway to spiritual renewal. Sefirat HaOmer – the literal counting of seven week’s days in Jewish tradition- is drawing to a close with the upcoming Shavuot holiday (Tuesday night). Reflecting the Biblical commandment to sacrifice a measure of the new barley harvest at […]